sewbeautiful1

I am looking for a machine quilting frame that would fit my Janome Skyline S9. I am trying to find something under a 1k and something where I move the machine over the quilt not the quilt under the machine like the Flynn frame.

feline fanatic

Just curious, that machine has a lot of features and embroidery capability. It also only has an 8" throat which is really small for frame quilting, especially once you advance the quilt a few times. I am wondering why you want to mount a machine that has so many features into a frame as it isn't the kind of thing you really want to constantly be moving the machine on and off the frame. Also I would think with its embroidery capability you may want to look into quilting using the embroidery. If you still want to use this machine in a frame, something like this may be a good solution for you. https://www.sewingmachinesplus.com/q...SABEgIH9fD_BwE

sewbeautiful1

Feline fanatic,

Thank you for your response! This machine is a recent acquisition for me and I am still learning I am absolutely not familiar with frame quilting so I wanted to ask someone who would know and gather info (like you suggested, it may not even be a good idea with the machine i have )

I recently completed a lap quilt and did free motion and embroidery quilting on it. It worked fine but it was VERY cumbersome to move this lap quilt around for a few reasons: my largest hoop that can be used with this machine is 6x9 and even for a lap quilt it took FOREVER (because of the size) to just do select patches of embroidery (I free motion quilted in between). Then I had to hold the quilt in the air just so that it would not exert pressure on the hoop or the machine was giving me errors. I guess I was looking for a way to move through the quilting a little more efficiently but maybe that's the only way I have with the machine I have...

Also, I do understand that this set up wouldn't substitute a long arm but my thinking was if I can take the quilt holding out of the picture I can just focus on the quilting. I figured 8" would be big enough if the roller is small enough? See I have no experience to know if that is a good idea...

feline fanatic

Gotcha! It is doable but you will be frustrated with the lack of throat space and most quilts you make will need to be turned half way through because you will run out of room. But the one I linked to may be different. It doesn't appear to have take up rollers on it. Most people (but not all of course!) stick with fairly basic machines to mount on a rack. Often one that does straight stitch only. You don't need any fancy stitches to do FMQ.
You may wish to also look into a suspension system if that is feasible for you. We had one member here build one and post pics of it. PVC Embroidery/Quilt support frame
If the text is missing when you hit the link, just refresh your browser window.

Sephie

Something that requires less building and is still really cheap is building a foam insulation topper for your quilting table that custom fits your machine. I did this following Marguerita McManus' videos online tutorial and it has been the single greatest thing that changed my FMQ experience. My only regret is that I procrastinated so long before doing it. Perhaps if you had the tabletop level with your machine, you could still do the embroidery quilting on it without having to hold the quilt up. Either way, it would also make fmq much easier on your machine. I do all my quilting on my little 6.5in throat and having the machine level with the tabletop is crucial.

Video here:
https://youtu.be/g14govA4pIM

It's a 2 part video. Basically, you cut foam insulation (get it at Home Depot, I used the purple/pink Pink Panther one, because I couldn't find the blue thick one she used) to fit your machine. I taped mine together with packing tape, and then taped clear vinyl on top and covering the sides. She doesn't tape hers down I think, but I wanted the edges of the insulation covered so I did it and used packing tape to secure everything. It's held up well over about 4 years now so far.

sewbeautiful1

Sephie,

It's funny that you should suggest a foam topper for the quilting table... my husband and I Just talked about sinking my sewing machine into a table top to give me more room to lay the quilt on so it would make the FMQ easier. He thinks that it would convince me to hold off on getting a quilting frame until I am ready for a larger (queen/king size) quilt.

cashs_mom

You can also get a SewEzi table for your machine. I have the small portable one and the extension table. I set it up next to one of the tables in my sewing room and it allows the quilt to be supported and not drag when I'm quilting. It also puts the machine at a good height to sew comfortably. I also bought a Juki 2200 QVP Mini this year. The larger throat space makes FMQ so easy even on a large quilt.

brendaj8689

I bought a table at the local thrift store and recessed my machine. Go to pintrest and look at the DIY ideas. https://images.search.yahoo.com/sear...able&fr=mcafee
Good luck

sewbeautiful1

Thank you! This is exactly what we are thinking about doing... hopefully it will be cheaper than buying an extension table... Was your experience with recessing the machine difficult? Would you do it again or just buy a portable extension table?

sewbeautiful1

Patrice,

I have looked at those as well but at this point I am only quilting at home and do not travel for classes etc... The portable table still looks a bit small to contain a larger quilt (perhaps twin sized?) What is your experience with your portable table like? Do you find that you have enough room for larger size quilts or do you still find yourself needing just a bit more room?

There is an option for $100 to get a table top extension table for this machine but i would still be "hovering" over it, so I gave up on that idea.